Chicken Ring Cooking Device and Method

ABSTRACT

A commercial cooking apparatus is provided for simultaneous steaming and two-sided grilling of food items having non-uniform thickness and/or variations in nominal thickness. The apparatus includes a compressible, heat-resistant ring member, and optionally a flexible, non-stick, heat-resistant film material associated with the ring member to form a cavity defined by the inner perimeter of the ring member. A cooking method is also disclosed, wherein a food item and a quantity of water are introduced into the cavity, and the food item is simultaneously cooked by the heated upper and lower platens of a conventional clamshell grill or similar apparatus and by steam generated by heating the water.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a division of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/072,339,filed on Feb. 26, 2008, pending, the entire disclosure of which ishereby expressly incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to cooking devices and methods of cookingfood items, and more particularly to cooking food items havingnon-uniform thickness and variations in nominal thickness, onconventional clamshell grills or similar appliances.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Food items of non-uniform thickness can present problems for uniform andefficient cooking, particularly for a commercial restaurant where largenumbers of such food items need to be cooked efficiently and uniformly.

Enclosures adapted for simultaneous steaming and grilling of such fooditems on a platen surface have been employed. In particular, has beenknown to cook one or more food items on a heated platen located under anenclosure assembly having a cover, with a small water container mountedon the cover for dripping water onto the platen surface. The waterproduces steam, which cooks the thinner portions of the food items notin direct contact with the heated platen. However, such an assembly isonly adapted for one-sided grilling, and so the food items must beturned over typically about halfway through the cooking process topermit grilling on the opposite side. This method of cooking such fooditems requires substantial labor and time.

An efficient, practical and economical device and method for thesimultaneous steaming and two-sided grilling, such as on a clamshellgrill, of food items, including those that have substantial variationsin thickness, and of food items having variations in nominal thicknessfrom one food item to another is needed.

A need exists for a cooking device and method for simultaneous steamingand two-sided grilling on a flat platen grill of food items havingnon-uniform thickness and variations in nominal thickness from one fooditem to the next.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, an apparatus for heatingand/or cooking a food item having a non-uniform thickness is provided.As used herein, unless otherwise specified, the term “cooking” includesheating a food product that has been previously cooked. The apparatusincludes a compressible, heat-resistant ring member that defines aninner perimeter which surrounds an area sufficient to contain a fooditem to be cooked. The apparatus may further include a flexible,non-stick, heat-resistant film material associated with the ring memberto form a cavity within the inner perimeter of the ring member. A fooditem can be placed on top of the flexible, non-stick, heat-resistantfilm material within the cavity. The film material may be a single sheetof material. The film material defines, in conjunction with the ringmember, a cavity within the inner perimeter of the ring member. The filmmaterial may comprise an upper and lower sheet wherein the lower sheetdefines the lower portion of the cavity within the inner perimeter ofthe ring member, thereby defining a volume into which a food item oritems can be placed. The upper sheet may be associated with the ringmember in a variety of ways. For example, the upper sheet may be drapedover the ring member. Alternatively, the upper sheet of the filmmaterial may be mounted to a heated upper platen of, for example, aclamshell grill type apparatus.

Typically, it is desirable that the cavity in conjunction with the upperplaten of a clamshell grill type apparatus will be able to retain waterand steam created by heating water contained in the cavity, such as upto a pressure of from about 0.5 to about 3.0 psig (pounds per squareinch gauge pressure) and any value or range in that range, including,for example, 1 psig, a range of about 0.75 to about 1.5 psig and 2 psig.

The outer material of the heat-resistant ring member may be the same ordifferent from the internal material of the ring member. The outersurface of the ring member may be a non-stick heat-resistant material.

The ring member may be made in whole or in part of high temperatureresistant silicone rubber or a material such as PTFE(polytetrafluoroethylene).

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention the ringmember is a solid unitary compressible body. In another embodiment, thering member may include a compressible sleeve around a metal core. Instill another embodiment, the ring member may comprise a hollowcompressible tube.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, theapparatus may include only a compressible, heat-resistant ring member.Typically, such a ring member will have a compressibility in theoperating height range (uncompressed height to compressed height whencooking food) in the range of from about 10% to about 50% heightreduction per 2 pounds per square inch of compression force applied tothe ring member. While the uncompressed height of the ring member can beas desired, a typical height range for many cooking food items, such asboneless chicken breasts, will be in the range of from about 1 ½ toabout ⅜ inches. In addition, the ring member may be solid or hollow.

Typically, the ring member is formed of compressible, heat-resistantmaterial. In one embodiment, the ring member may comprise a sleeve ofcompressible, heat-resistant material that is disposed around a coremetal ring. In accordance with another embodiment, the ring membercomprises a rube of compressible heat-resistant material and may haveeither a solid or a hollow core. The ring member can have across-sectional shape as desired, and may be, for example, generallycircular, oval, rectangular, octagonal or triangular.

In accordance with still another aspect of the present invention, amethod for the simultaneous steaming and grilling of a food item havinga non-uniform thickness is provided. The food item to be steamed andgrilled may be uncooked, partially cooked, completely cooked, frozen,unfrozen, and at any desired initial temperature. Thus, further cookingor heating of an already cooked food item is contemplated. The methodincludes providing a compressible heat-resistant ring member defining aninner perimeter around an area sufficient to contain the food item to becooked, covering at least a portion of the ring member with a flexible,non-stick, heat-resistant film material to form a cavity defined by theinner perimeter of the ring member and the flexible, non-stick,heat-resistant film material for containing the food item to be cooked,introducing the food item into the cavity, disposing a bottom face ofthe ring member and the film material in contact with the heated lowerplaten, dosing the heated upper platen onto a top surface of the ringmember and the food item and cooking the food item with hear from theupper and lower heated platens. This results in two-sided and completecooking of the food item which may have an irregular shape. The methodmay further include introducing water into the cavity and heating thewater with heat from the heated lower platen to produce steam. This canresult in the cooking of the entire food item including the portions ofthe food item that do not receive heat by conduction from the heatedplatens.

In accordance with another aspect of the method of the invention, thefood item and the ring member are compressed to different degrees andthe method further includes dosing the heated upper platen onto the ringmember and the food item to compress the height of the taller of thefood item and the ring member to a height less than or equal to theuncompressed height of the shorter of the food item and the ring member.Typically, the uncompressed height of the ring member may be greaterthan the uncompressed height of the food item, and when compressed, theheight of the ring is equal to or less than the maximum height of thecompressed food item. This is because some food items have an irregularheight and/or are relatively uncompressible to a significant degree,whereas the compressibility of the compressible ring member can be asdesired by selecting an appropriate material or materials forconstruction of the compressible ring member.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention an apparatus forsimultaneous steaming and two-sided grilling of a food item havingnon-uniform thickness includes a compressible, heat-resistant ringmember and flexible, non-stick, heat-resistant film material associatedwith the ring member to form a cavity for cooking the food item betweenheated upper and lower platens of a clamshell grill or similarapparatus. The film material may be a polymeric sheet materialcomprising PTFE, which may be pure or manipulated PTFE, typically havinga thickness of about 0.0045 inches or less. More typically, the filmmaterial is a gas-permeable and liquid-impermeable material which may beexpanded or dispersion-polymerized PTFE. The film material may be in theform of a single sheet or two or more sheets, and preferably covers thetop and/or bottom face of the ring member. A bottom sheet may define avolume containing the ring member or defined within the inner perimeterof the ring member. A top sheet may be mounted to the upper platen.Preferably, the cavity is adapted to hold water, and when the upperplaten is dosed onto the apparatus, the cavity preferably retains steam.

In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, a methodof cooking a food item having non-uniform thickness includes introducinga food item into the cavity of a compressible ring member in accordancewith the present invention disposed in a clamshell grill, dosing theupper platen of the clamshell grill, and cooking the food item insidethe cavity. The method may further include providing the compressiblering member having a height greater than the height of the food item,applying a compressive force to the compressible ring member, such asfrom the upper platen of the clamshell grill in an amount sufficient toreduce the height of the compressible ring member to the maximum heightof the food item (which may also be somewhat compressed). The food itemcan be any type of food, and typically will be a solid or semi-solid,and may be a meat item. Especially preferred types of food items arethose having an irregular shape including height, such as a bonelesschicken breast, for example.

In accordance with another aspect of a method of the present invention,a quantity of water is introduced into the cavity with the food item.When the cavity is dosed, thicker portions of the food item are cookedby contact with the hot platens or film material, and thinner portionsare cooked by steam generated by heating the water.

In accordance with another aspect of a method of the present invention,at least the ring member, and preferably both the ring member and thefood item, are compressed by a force from the upper platen duringheating. Typically, for most types of food, the ring member will becompressed more than the food item, although for foods that are soft orsemi-solid the food may be compressed more than the ring member for agiven force. In such case, the food item can have a greater uncompressedheight than the uncompressed ring member to help ensure two-sidedcooking of the food item.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a ring member in accordance with theinvention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the ring member of FIG. 1 disposed on alower heated platen of a clamshell grill.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of shell grill closed onto the ring memberof FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a front sectional illustration of a method of cooking achicken breast in the ring member of FIG. 1 disposed between heatedplatens of a clamshell grill.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the ring member of FIG. 1 covered by alower release sheet and disposed on the lower heated platen of aclamshell grill, and an upper release sheet mounted to the upper platenof the clamshell grill.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a clamshell grill with an upper releasesheet closed onto a ring member covered by a lower release sheet.

FIG. 7 is a front sectional illustration of a method of cooking achicken breast in a clamshell grill using the ring member shown in FIG.5.

FIG. 8 is a perspective illustration of an alternative method ofcovering the ring member with a lower release sheet.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the covered ring member illustrated inFIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a front sectional view of the covered ring member shown inFIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a front sectional illustration of a method of cooking achicken breast in a clamshell grill using the covered ring member shownin FIG. 9.

FIG. 12 is a perspective illustration of a method of covering the bottomand top of a ring member with a single release sheet.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the covered ring member illustrated inFIG. 12.

FIG. 14 is a front sectional view of the covered ring member shown inFIG. 13.

FIG. 15 is a front sectional illustration of a method of cooking achicken breast in a clamshell grill using the covered ring member shownin FIG. 13.

FIG. 16 is a perspective illustration of an alternative method ofcovering the bottom and top of a ring member with a single releasesheet.

FIG. 17 is a front sectional illustration of the alternative method ofcovering a ring member illustrated in FIG. 16.

FIG. 18 is a front sectional illustration of a method of cooking achicken breast in a clamshell grill using the covered ring memberillustrated in FIGS. 16-17.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of an array of ring members for a ringassembly in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 20 a is a front sectional view of an alternative embodiment of aring member composed of a compressible tube with a metal core.

FIG. 20 b is a front sectional view of an alternative embodiment of aring member composed of a compressible tube with a hollow core,

FIG. 21 a is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a ringmember having a seam.

FIG. 21 b is a plan view of the alternative embodiment of a ring memberhaving a compressible tube and stiff core, wherein the compressible tubeis continuous, but the stiff core is discontinuous, being interrupted bya small gap.

FIG. 22 is an illustration of a preferred cooking method in which both achicken breast and ring member are compressed by a force from a heatedupper platen onto a heated lower platen, whether the chicken breast is(a) taller than, (b) shorter than, or (c) the same height as the ringmember.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Systems for achieving faster and more uniform cooking of food itemshaving non-uniform thickness and/or variations in nominal thickness bysimultaneous two-sided grilling and steaming are described in thissection. In particular, “chicken ring” cooking systems and methods inaccordance with the invention are illustrated in FIGS. 1-22. Althoughthe illustrated embodiments described below relate to systems andmethods for cooking chicken breasts, the present invention is notintended to be so limited, and applies equally to systems and methodsfor heating and/or cooking other food items having non-uniform thicknessand/or variations in nominal thickness, such as other cuts or types ofmeat, mushrooms, vegetable matter or the like, regardless of food type.

Referring to FIG. 1, an open (i.e., uncovered) chicken ring 10 inaccordance with the present invention is shown. The chicken ring 10 iscomposed of a compressible ring member 12. In the embodimentsillustrated in the Figures, the chicken ring 10 is in the overallgeneral shape of a rectangle with rounded corners, but it will beappreciated that other shapes may be utilized or better suited to theshape of food items to be cooked or other parameters of a particularcooking system. With this understanding, the term “ring” is used toindicate a structure with an outer perimeter and an inner perimeterdefining an interior area, but is not intended to be limited tostructures having rounded outer and inner perimeters.

As shown in FIGS. 2-4, open chicken ring 10 may be used to cook achicken breast B on a conventional clamshell grill 14, having a heatedlower platen 16 and a heated upper platen 18. Referring to FIG. 2, ringmember 12 may be placed on the surface of heated lower platen 16 to forma cavity 20 defined by inner perimeter 12 c of ring member 12. A chickenbreast B and quantity of water W may be introduced into cavity 20, indirect contact with heated lower platen 16. Upper platen 18 may then beclosed onto ring member 12 and chicken breast B, either manually byusing the handle 22, or by automatic device (not shown), such as a motoror hydraulic mechanism, yielding the arrangement shown in FIG. 3.Turning to FIG. 4, a sectional view of the arrangement shown in FIG. 3,one sees that cavity 20 is bounded on all sides by the inner perimeterof ring member 12, and below and above by heated platens 16 and 18.Cavity 20 thus retains steam generated when quantity of water W isheated. This steam cooks thinner portions B′ of chicken breast B not indirect contact with either heated platen, while direct heat from theplatens grills the thicker portions of chicken breast B from above andbelow. In this manner, even cooking of chicken breast B may be achievedmore quickly than by the known method of simultaneous steaming andone-sided grilling.

In other embodiments, chicken ring 10 covered by flexible, non-stickrelease sheet material is used to cook chicken breast B on aconventional clamshell grill.

Referring to FIGS, 5-7, ring member 12 is covered by a lower releasesheet 24 and an upper release sheet 26. As shown in FIG. 5, lowerrelease sheet 24 may be laid on top of ring member 12 to line the bottomand sides of cavity 20, and chicken breast B and quantity of water W maybe introduced into cavity 20. Upper release sheet 26 is preferablymounted in intimate contact with upper platen 18, as in FIG. 5, so thatcavity 20 is substantially closed by release sheets 24 and 26 when upperplaten 18 is lowered onto chicken ring 10. More preferably, upperrelease sheet 26 is mounted to upper platen 18 by a retention assembly28, composed of nested outer and inner frames 30 and 32, respectively,and spring mechanisms 34. Spring mechanisms 34 may be attached to pins36 on outer frame 30 and the sides of upper platen 18, thereby providingtension between nested outer and inner frames 30 and 32 and upper platen18. Upper release sheet 26 is thus retained in intimate contact with theheated surface of upper platen 18. Alternatively, in a method notillustrated, upper release sheet 26 may be simply laid on top of chickenbreast B and lower release sheet 24 to substantially close cavity 20before clamshell grill 14 is closed.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of clamshell grill 14 closed onto coveredchicken ring 10 shown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a front sectional illustration of a method of cooking achicken breast in clamshell grill 14 using the covered chicken ring 10shown in FIG, 5. As in the open chicken ring cooking method, the thickerportions of chicken breast B are cooked by two-sided grilling while thethinner portions B′ are simultaneously steamed by steam generated fromthe quantity of water W.

FIGS. 8-11 illustrate an alternative embodiment of covered chicken ring10, Referring to FIG, 8, ring member 12 may be laid on top of lowerrelease sheet 24, and the edges of lower release sheet 24 may be wrappedover the outer periphery of ring member 12, as indicated by arrows C-F,to cover the bottom face and outer periphery of ring member 12. FIGS.9-10 are perspective and front sectional views, respectively, of coveredchicken ring 10 so assembled. As shown, chicken breast B and quantity ofwater W are introduced into cavity 20 before lower release sheet 24 iswrapped over ring member 12, but they may be introduced at any timebefore clamshell grill 14 is closed onto chicken ring 10. FIG. 11 is afront sectional illustration of a method of simultaneous steaming andtwo-sided grilling of chicken breast B between heated platens 16 and 18using alternative covered chicken ring 10 shown in FIGS. 9-10.

Alternatively, a single release sheet may cover the bottom face 12 a andtop face 12 b of ring member 12. Referring to FIG. 12, ring member 12may be laid on top of a bottom portion 38 a of single release sheet 38,and chicken breast B and quantity of water W may be introduced intoresulting cavity 20. The bottom portion 38 a of single release sheet 38may then be wrapped over the outer periphery 12 d of ring member 12 asindicated by arrows C-F, and the narrower top portion 38 b of singlerelease sheet 38 folded over top face 12 b of ring member 12 asindicated by arrow G. Closed chicken ring 10 so assembled is shown inFIG. 13 in a perspective view, and in FIG. 14 in a front sectional view.FIG. 15 is a front sectional illustration of a method of simultaneoussteaming and two-sided grilling of chicken breast B between heatedplatens 16 and 18 using closed chicken ring 10 shown in FIGS. 13-14. Asshown, single release sheet 38 is “tailored” to cover ring member 12,having a wider bottom portion 38 a for covering the bottom 12 a andouter periphery 12 d of ring member 12, and a narrower top portion 38 bfor covering the top of ring member 12. However, the skilledpractitioner will understand that rectangular single release sheet 38will also suffice, though it may result in increased use of material notneeded to cover ring member 12.

Referring to FIG. 16, an alternative method of covering bottom face 12 aand top face 12 b of ring member 12 with single release sheet 38 isillustrated. In this embodiment, bottom portion 38 a of single releasesheet 38 may be laid on top of ring member 12 to line cavity 20 definedby the inner perimeter of ring member 12, into which cavity chickenbreast B and quantity of water W may be introduced. Next, the topportion 38 b of single release sheet 38 may be folded to cover top face12 b of ring member 12, as indicated by arrow G. FIG. 17 is a frontsectional illustration of the assembly method illustrated in FIG. 16.FIG. 18 is an illustration of a method of simultaneous steaming andtwo-sided grilling of chicken breast B between heated platens 16 and 18using covered chicken ring 10 so assembled.

Release sheet material suitable for use in the present invention isflexible, non-stick, heat-resistant film material, such as pure ormodified PTFE film material available from Saint-Gobain PerformancePlastics Corporation (“St. Gobain”), or similar material. Preferably,the release sheet material is also a gas-permeable (i.e., permeable bygases including vapors) and liquid-impermeable material, such asdispersion-polymerized or expanded PTFE commonly known and used inindustry. Although release sheet material suitable for the proposedinvention is not limited to any particular initial shape, such materialis typically available in the form of flat rectangular sheets. This formis well suited to upper release sheet 26 mounted to flat upper platen18. However, when disposed in association with ring member 12 asdepicted in FIGS. 1-4, lower release sheet 24 or single release sheet 38in this form will inevitably be bunched and/or folded over itself atsome portions of its area. To the extent feasible, a single or lowerrelease sheet is preferably mounted in such a way that its bunched orfolded portions are located away from the “hot” areas defined by theinner perimeter of ring member 12, through which heat flows from heatedlower platen 16 or heated upper platen 18 into chicken breast B. Bykeeping the hot areas of the release sheet material substantially smoothand flat, intimate heat transfer contact between lower release sheet 24and lower platen 16 or between single release sheet 38 and platens 16and 18 is achieved where it is most desirable.

In another embodiment, a chicken ring assembly comprises an array 40 ofring members 12, as depicted in FIG. 19. Each ring member 12 may formpart of an individual chicken ring 10 as described in any of theprevious embodiments. The array 40 of ring members 12 may be unitary ora modular assembly of individual ring members 12.

Ring member 12 comprises a material that is compressible, resistant tocooking temperatures such as up to about 425° F., and more preferably upto about 475° F. or higher, and preferably non-stick. Any such materialcan be used that provides the desired characteristics. The material maybe, for example, a silicone rubber, urethane rubber, fluoropolymer orsimilar polymeric material. Where it is desired that ring member 12substantially retain its shape, it may comprise a compressible tube 42with a stiff core 44 made of metal or other sufficiently stiff material,as illustrated in cross-sectional view in FIG. 20 a. Alternatively,referring to the cross-sectional view shown in FIG. 20 b, ring member 12may comprise compressible tube 42 with a hollow core 46, especiallywhere enhanced compressibility is desired. For good steam retentionduring cooking, ring member 12 is preferably continuous at least at itsouter periphery. It may, for example, be joined at a seam 48, as shownin perspective view in FIG. 21 a. Seam 48 may be formed by theapplication of a suitable adhesive, heat, or any other appropriatesealing means or method. On the other hand, when ring member 12 includesmetal core 44, it is not important that core 44 be continuous. Forexample, compressible tube 42 may be joined at seam 48, while core 44may be a substantially closed but discontinuous loop of stiff materialinterrupted by a small gap 50, as indicated in FIG. 21 b.

A preferred cooking method in accordance with the present invention isnow described. Chicken ring 10 according to any of the previouslydescribed embodiments is laid on heated lower platen 16, chicken breastB and quantity of water W are introduced into cavity 20, and heatedupper platen 18 is closed onto ring 10, creating an arrangement asdepicted in any of FIG. 4, 7, 11, 15 or 18 in front sectional view. Asubstantial area of the top and bottom faces of chicken breast B is thenheated in direct contact with the release sheet material or platensurfaces, while the sides and thinner portions of breast B not in directcontact with the release sheet material or a platen surface are heatedby steam generated from the quantity of water W, which steam issubstantially retained within cavity 20. A desired amount of water isintroduced before closing the upper platen by any suitable method, suchas with a measuring cup, for example. Typically, the desired amount ofwater will be about 1/16 to ¼ cup (0.5 to about 2 ounces) and preferablyabout ⅛ cup (1 fluid ounce) for a chicken breast weighing about 4 ounceswith a chicken ring that has an enclosed volume when compressed and inuse of about 4-5 cubic inches, or for a larger ring that accommodatesfour about-4-ounce chicken breasts about 18 cubic inches. By eliminatingthe need to turn over the chicken breast about hallway through thecooking process and by cooking both sides at once, the foregoing cookingmethod achieves greatly reduced cooking times over the prior art methodof simultaneous steaming and one-sided cooking. More specifically, abouta 40-45% reduction results by utilizing the apparatus and method inaccordance with the invention with chicken breasts that are frozen whenplaced into the cooking apparatus.

Chicken breast B and ring member 12 may have equal or different initialheights H_(B) and H_(R), as illustrated by the alternative conditions(a)-(c) depicted in FIG. 22. Whether H_(B) is initially greater than,less than, or equal to H_(R), a force F from upper platen 18 preferablycompresses both chicken breast B and ring member 12 to the samecompressed height H_(C). The term “compressed height” is used herein torefer to the height of an object subjected to pressure from an upperplaten, whether or not the height of the object actually decreases whensubjected to the pressure. In some embodiments the force may be solelyprovided by the passive weight of the platen, while in other embodimentsan applied force may be provided, such as from a hydraulic mechanism.Compression of ring member 12 is desirable because it improves the sealbetween ring member 12 and the release sheet material or platen, therebyimproving steam retention within cavity 20. Slight compression of anunfrozen chicken breast B is also desirable, as it deforms the breast toincrease the area of the breast in contact with the heated platens orrelease sheets. Moreover, pressure on a frozen or unfrozen chickenbreast improves intimate heat transfer contact at the solid-to-solidinterlaces between the breast and release sheet material, between therelease sheet material and heated platens, and/or between the breast andthe heated platens, thereby increasing the efficiency of heat transferto the breast from each heated platen and thus quickens thawing of thechicken breast. Where chicken breast B is initially frozen andrelatively uncompressible, although not required, H_(B) is preferablyless than H_(R) to allow ring member 12 to be immediately compressed,for more effective steam retention. An initially uncompressible frozenchicken breast B is preferably compressed gradually and slightly as itis thawed by heat from the heated platens.

While the invention has been described with respect to certain preferredembodiments, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, is tobe understood that the invention is capable of numerous changes,modifications and rearrangements, and such changes, modifications andrearrangements are intended to be covered by the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for cooking a solid food item, with acompressible, heat-resistant ring member having a bottom, a top, and aninner perimeter defining an area sufficient to contain a food item to becooked and with a lower cooking surface and an upper cooking surface,comprising: placing the bottom of the ring member on the lower cookingsurface to form a cavity defined by the lower cooking surface and theinner perimeter; introducing the solid food item into the cavity so thata portion of the food item contacts the lower cooking surface; placingthe upper cooking surface in contact with an upper portion of the fooditem and in contact with the top of the ring member to at leastsubstantially enclose the cavity; and cooking the food item with heatfrom the upper and lower cooking surfaces.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein the upper and lower cooking surfaces each comprise a respectiveupper and lower cooking platen and further comprising heating the upperand lower cooking platens to heat the upper and lower cooking surfaces.3. The method of claim 1, wherein the upper and lower cooking surfaceseach comprise a respective upper and lower cooking platen, the upper andlower cooking surfaces being defined by respective cooking surfaces ofthe upper and lower cooking platens.
 4. The method of claim 1, the lowercooking surface comprising a top side of a flexible, non-stick, heatresistant film material.
 5. The method of claim 4, the upper cookingsurface comprising a bottom side of a flexible, non-stick, heatresistant film material.
 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:introducing water into the cavity; heating the water with heat from thelower cooking surface to produce steam, and steaming the food item withthe steam.
 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising substantiallyretaining the water and steam within the cavity.
 8. The method of claim7, further comprising retaining the steam within the cavity at a gaugepressure of from about 0.5 psig to about 3.0 psig.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the food item and ring member have differentuncompressed heights, and the method further comprises dosing a heatedupper platen onto a top face of the ring member and the food itemcomprises compressing the height of the taller of the food item and ringmember to a height less than or equal to the uncompressed height of theshorter of the food item and ring member.
 10. The method of claim 9,said compressing the height comprising compressing the height of thering member to a height less than or equal to the uncompressed height ofthe food item and being performed when the food item is in an at leastpartially frozen state.
 11. The method of claim 1, further comprisingapplying compression force to the ring member to reduce the height ofthe ring member by about 10% to about 50% per 2 psi of compression forceapplied.
 12. A method for simultaneous steaming and two-sided grillingof a food item with heated upper and lower platens with a compressible,heat-resistant ring member having a bottom, a top, and an innerperimeter, comprising: disposing the bottom of the ring member incontact with the heated lower platen to form a cavity defined by theheated lower platen and the inner perimeter of the ring member forcontaining a food item to be cooked; introducing the food item into thecavity; contacting the ring member and the food item with the upperheated platen; and cooking the food item with heat from the heatedplatens.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising: adding water tothe cavity; heating the water with heat from the heated lower platen toproduce steam; and steaming the food item with the steam.
 14. The methodof claim 13, further comprising substantially retaining the water andsteam within the cavity.
 15. The method of claim 14, further comprisingretaining the steam within the cavity at a gauge pressure of from about0.5 psig to about 3.0 psig.
 16. The method of claim 12, the food itemand ring member having different uncompressed heights, and said dosingthe heated upper platen onto the ring member and the food itemcomprising compressing the height of the taller of the food item andring member to a height less than or equal to the uncompressed height ofthe shorter of the food item and ring member.
 17. The method of claim16, said compressing the height comprising compressing the height of thering member to a height less than or equal to the uncompressed height ofthe food item and being performed when the food item is in an at leastpartially frozen state.
 18. The method of claim 12, further comprisingapplying compression force to the ring member to reduce the height ofthe ring member by about 10% to about 50% per 2 psi of compression forceapplied.
 19. A method for cooking a food item, with a compressible,heat-resistant ring member defining an inner perimeter of an areasufficient to contain the food item to be cooked with a lower cookingsurface and an upper cooking surface, comprising: placing the bottom ofthe ring member on the lower cooking surface to form a cavity defined bythe lower cooking surface and the inner perimeter; introducing the fooditem into the cavity that rests on the lower cooking surface; placingthe upper cooking surface in contact with a top face of the food itemand in association with the top face of the ring member to at leastsubstantially enclose the cavity; and cooking the food item with heatfrom the upper and lower cooking surfaces.
 20. The method of claim 19further comprising compressing the ring member during cooking to reducethe height of the ring member by at least 10% of its uncompressedheight.